These Are The Moments
by TStabler
Summary: There are moments, some so small we almost miss them, that provide more joy and satisfaction in our lives than we seem to understand. Elliot Stabler has come to that realization, and after his life turns upside down, he vows to make these moments count. EO M in future chaps
1. Chapter 1

A **new one? Maybe. It is often the little moments that remind us how truly precious and important life is.**

 **DISCLAIMER: I do not own the show or the characters, but, oh, how I wish I did.**

She stood in the doorway, watching with crossed arms and a flat smile as her partner tried to wrangle his two year old son. She laughed as he chased the boy around the kitchen island, finally catching him and lifting him up. She closed her eyes and smiled wider as he set him down on the counter and pointed a finger at him.

"Eli," he said, panting, "Do not give your sister a hard time today, please?" He turned his head. "Maureen, come on, would ya? I have to go!"

Fast and loud footsteps carried into the room and a beautiful, blonde girl walked through the arch, stopping briefly to give a one armed hug to the older woman beside her. "I'm here, Dad," she said, reaching for the young boy, still trying to wriggle out of his father's arms. "You and Liv, be careful, okay?"

"Always are," he said, kissing her cheek. He turned to his partner, grinning. "We need coffee," he said to her. He grabbed her arm and pulled, laughing at the way she grinned and waved at his son as they left.

"He has the most infectious laugh," she told him, following him down the front steps of his house. "He's a happy boy, Elliot."

"Yeah," Elliot said with a smile. "I think we, uh, we're all starting to feel happy again." He winked at her and got into the driver's side of his black truck.

She wondered why he winked, what he'd meant, as she settled into the passenger seat.

When he heard the small click of her seatbelt, he turned to look at her. "You just stood there," he said. "You saw that I was having trouble getting him, and you just stood there, laughing." He chuckled. "Look out, Olivia, because payback is a bitch."

She smiled watching his hand move the car's gearshift into reverse. "I love watching you with him." She paused. "Actually, I...I didn't think you knew I was there." She tucked her hair behind her ear and took a slow breath.

"I knew." He blew out of the small gap between his lips. "I always know when you're around." He shifted into drive and hit the gas, heading for the station. "And I am so fucking thankful that you're around."

She smiled as she dug around in her jacket pocket. "Me too," she said. She stilled and held up two five dollar bills. "I think we should spring for the good stuff," she said, giving him a mischievous look.

He chuckled and made a left turn, heading exactly where she wanted him to go. "You really think he was happy this morning?"

"The smile on his face, and that laugh," she let her head fall back and hit her seat as she closed her eyes and let out a content sigh. "He was having the time of his life with you, Daddy." She sat up again, her smile fading. "He's too young to realize what happened, all he knows is that..."

"The blonde woman who fed him in the morning isn't around," he finished gruffly. "You've been doing everything else," he said with a bitter tone. "Besides, you were the first person he saw, the first person who held him. He probably already thinks..."

"He doesn't think I'm his mother," she said with a roll of her eyes, cutting him off.

"Liv," he spoke, a new seriousness in his voice that filled the car with a chill, "I really think he does." He pulled into the drive through lane at the coffee place, turned to her, and said, "He never really bonded with Kathy. He was overly attached to me, and whenever you were in his line of vision, no one else existed at all." He grinned. "Takes after his father, there, huh?"

She laughed but shook her head. "I love him, El." She picked up her head and shrugged. "I love all of your kids, even though...well, I know with some of them, the feeling isn't mutual."

"They all love you," he affirmed. He let the car roll up as the line moved ahead. "It's me they're still pissed off at, they're still trying to make sense of it all, and they know I'm not exactly blameless in this." He glanced over at her and smirked. "Not at all."

She shifted in her seat and pointed. "Order the coffee, Don Juan," she teased.

He rolled up to the window, ordered their coffee, paid, and carefully took them from the attendant. He handed Olivia her cup and watched her take a sip. He laughed loudly when she gave him a thumbs up and took another long sip. "Shit," he hissed, trying to drive with one hand as the phone in his pocket rang. "Can you...uh..."

"Yeah," she said, and she worked her free hand into his pocket. As she grabbed his phone, she couldn't help teasing him a bit. She grinned proudly, hearing him moan, and she licked her lips as she answered the phone and held it up to his ear.

"Stabler," he barked into the phone, glaring at Olivia for make his pants slightly more uncomfortable. "Yeah, we're almost at the...well, we have paperwork so we thought we'd come in early to...okay, okay, what's the address? Yeah. Okay." He nodded at Olivia, telling her to hang up, and he said, "DB at the Meridian Hotel."

She shoved his phone back in his pocket, laughing to herself when he rolled his eyes. "That's where the NYPD always has the New Year's Eve party, isn't it?"

"You know it is," he said, his cocky grin in place. He made a U-turn and hit the gas. As he drove, he realized these were the moments he treasured. From playing with his son in the kitchen, to a moment of flirty relaxation with Olivia, it was the little moments in his day that made him realize how much he truly loved his life. With a turn of the wheel, he decided he owed it to himself, and his family, to make every moment count.

Starting now.

 **A/N: this could be a one-shot, but I do have more moments planned, let me know?**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: It is often the little moments that remind us how truly precious and important life is.**

 **DISCLAIMER: I do not own the show or the characters, but, oh, how I wish I did.**

"Grant Carlyle," Olivia said, pressing a thumb tack through the photo and into the large corkboard at the front of the squadroom. "The name reeks of money, almost as much as he does."

"She's right," Elliot said as he leaned back in his chair with crosses arms. "He was wearing very expensive cologne. The kind of shit guys like me go into department stores to spray on before a first date," he laughed. "At almost two hundred bucks a bottle, the guy bathes in it, I don't need to tell you..."

"No, you don't," Cragen said, shaking his head. "What else you got on him, besides the overpowering stench of wealth."

Olivia turned and handed him a folded back file. "He's got a rap sheet, nothing that stuck. Accused of rape, twice, got off." She winced. "No pun intended." She folded her arms and leaned back against her desk. "He's got an expensive attorney and he's related to a few cops, including Monroe out of the Three-Oh." She looked at Cragen. "If he's our guy, this time won't be any different than the last four, and he will never see the inside of a courtroom."

Cragen shook his head. "This time," he said, "He's up against you two," he pointed to Olivia and then Elliot. "Go pick him up, ask him a few questions, be your usual charming selves and get him to cop to it."

"It's not gonna be that easy," Olivia said.

Elliot watched her lips move, trying like hell to pretend he wasn't imagining them wrapped around his cock. He shifted in his seat and lost the ability to concentrate on her words, more awestruck by her attitude and confidence in how she spoke.

He loved watching her work. He loved seeing the fierceness in her eyes as her muscles tightened beneath her clothes. He took pride in knowing what work they could do, professionally, personally, and intimately. Moments like this, when she proved she was smart and not just strong and beautiful, made his heart beat fast.

He remembered the first time she put him in his place at work, proved he was wrong and that she was right. He grinned, recalling the attitude that followed her home and into the bedroom, the fight that ended with grappling under the sheets. He licked his lips as images flashed in his mind, moments with her that may not have been morally righteous but couldn't have been more right. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, the taste of her springing to his tongue, her scent filling his lungs, and he chuckled knowing that now, there was nothing wrong about it.

"Elliot," she spat.

He blinked quickly and shook his head, her voice finally registering. "Yeah, what?"

She laughed and said, "You ready to head out? The sooner we nail the bastard, the sooner we can all go home."

He nodded, though he really had no idea where he agreed to go, or what he needed to do. He grabbed the keys to an old red four door off of the hook by his desk, waving at the rest of the people in the room. He walked out after her, hoping something she said would register.

"You okay, there?" She turned to look at him as she pulled open the stairwell door.

He bit his lip and nodded, walking through it. "Where are we going exactly?"

She chuckled and rolled her eyes. "I knew you weren't paying any attention." She let the door shut behind her and caught up to him, taking the stairs two at a time. "Melinda ran DNA from the Vic's fingernails and dress. Looks like Carlyle can't just buy his way out of this one."

"Are we going back to the hotel?" He screwed up his face at her as he hopped down onto the main landing and put his hand on the door handle.

"No, to Carlyle's office," she said, and then she looked at him. "What's with you? You're never this lost."

He smiled. "The whole time you were talking..." He paused, leaned closer, and let his fingertips slowly slide down the buttons of her shirt, "I was thinking of what other things those lips of yours could do, and how incredible you are. Inside and out."

She cleared her throat. "Wow, um," she bit her lip, "That...not at work."

He smiled at her, watching her blush slightly, loving that he was the only one who could garner that reaction from her. He shrugged and smirked at her, watching her walk into the lobby. "I can't help it," he said. "It's how I react to you."

She couldn't hide the smirk on her face as she walked with him, but she turned and said, "Gimme the keys."

"What? Why?" he retorted, the keys in his balled up fist.

"I'm driving," she said, holding out her hand, "give."

He raised an eyebrow at her. "What do I get if I let you drive?"

"You'll find out tonight," she said with a grin.

He swallowed hard and let the keys fall and dangle from his fingers. "Promise?"

"Swear," she said, clutching the keys. She gave a victorious laugh as she got into the car, started it, and waited for him. She watched as he clipped his seat belt and said, "Hold on," and peeled out of the parking space with a screech.

He was thrust back into his seat, laughing, and he yelled, "This is why you never drive!"

She chuckled and stepped on the gas, speeding out onto the road.

It was the look on her face, in her eyes, that made this moment another one he wanted to remember, and one he wanted to celebrate.

Tonight.

 **A/N: The next moment is very intimate. If you want it, let me know.**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: A moment that explains everything- and changes it all.**

 **DISCLAIMER: If I owned the characters I wouldn't need to write a disclaimer.**

The night had not gone as planned. Their rock-solid evidence was deemed circumstantial, and they had to work for hours to get something else on their prime suspect.

Half of the time they were alone and bored in the squadroom, the other half was spent running around the city like a pair of loons. The downtime did give them both time to think, and Olivia's thoughts were not entirely focused on the case.

In between phone calls and runs to the lab, she sat at her desk and let herself remember.

She remembered the panicked phone call she'd gotten from him, over a year ago, the way he'd babbled so frantically that she'd hung up and made the drive to Queens to calm him down and find out what he'd been trying to say.

He'd broken down the moment she'd walked into the house, telling her that he'd come home from work to find Kathy, his wife, gone, along with his children. The way he'd cried in her arms had broken her heart, but it was the way he'd looked up at her and silently begged for her help that had made the decision to stay with him an easy one.

Kathy had dropped the kids back off at the house the next day, but didn't return herself. She'd said goodbye to them, told Elliot a friend would be by for the rest of her things, and drove away leaving twenty years and five children in the dusty glow of her tail lights.

She cleared her throat, shaking off the painful memory, and grabbed her NYPD coffee mug off of her desk. She reached over and picked up Elliot's, too, and turned toward the back of the room. She felt his eyes on her as she poured the fresh coffee, his footsteps hitting her ears while she fixed both cups identically. She smiled at him as she handed him his coffee, taking a sip of hers, and tried to walk around her to go back to her desk.

He reached for her arm, curling his hand around it and, and pulled her back to him. "I was thinking," he told her, bringing his coffee to his lips as he trailed his hand up to her shoulder. "About the day...the day Kathy left for good."

"Coincidence," she said, feeling his hand slip down her back, her body turning toward his. "So was I."

"I doubt we remember it the same way," he laughed, taking another sip of his coffee. He pulled her closer as he placed his coffee down on the table near the pot. "I don't remember what she said, what her reasons were," he said. "But I remember what you were wearing. I remember exactly what you said to her, and I remember..." He took a breath and licked his lips. His other hand took hold of her hip and he swallowed a gulp before speaking again. "You took the kids back into the house, told them to go out on their favorite pajamas."

She smiled. She remembered, too, but didn't think he was paying attention to anything then. "Yeah," she whispered.

"You called the school, told the Headmaster they all had food poisoning," he laughed, sweep in one hand up her side, brushing her face, and he tucked her hair behind her ear. "You made them sit on the couch, you let them rent whatever movies they wanted, and you didn't let Eli off of your lap the entire time."

"Even if I wanted to put him down, he wouldn't let go of me," she countered. Her breath hitched when she felt his hand fall from the side of her face to around the back of her neck. She prayed that no one would walk into the room.

He looked into her eyes and curled the hand at her back around the hem of her shirt. "You ordered pizzas, you let them get whatever toppings they wanted, and then you stayed to tuck the twins and Eli in, you read him a story, and you did it all without anyone asking." He moved closer to her. "That night," he whispered just as his lips brushed hers, "Was the first time I let myself feel everything I was fighting. And when you willingly crawled into bed with me, just so I wouldn't be alone, that's the moment I realized just how big a favor Kathy did by leaving." He kissed her softly, quickly, and backed up to look at her again.

"Nothing happened that night," she said, her eyes narrowing slightly.

He chuckled, taking her coffee from her and putting it down next to his. "Not physically," he said, "Other than just holding each other all night, but everything happened that night. Everything." He took a deep breath and pulled her toward the angled staircase.

She fought him on it, shaking her head and trying without much success to pull him back toward their desks. "El, we have to finish..."

"Paperwork is gonna be there later," he cut her off, smirking. "Come with me, just give me ten minutes."

She rolled her eyes. Elliot's "ten minutes" was the rest of the world's "hour." She saw the look on his face, the plea in his eyes, and she caved, letting him drag her up the stairs and into the cribs.

He pushed her further into the room, closed and locked the door, and then loomed over her with a wicked gleam in his eyes. "I wanted to go home, spend some time with the kids," he spat out, taking off his tie with one hand while the other popped the buttons on his shirt. "And then...I wanted to...take more than ten fucking minutes."

"What?" She let out a surprised laugh. "What are you..."

He pressed a finger to her lips and shook his head. "No time," he said, and as soon as the words left his lips he replaced his finger with his mouth. He pried open her lips with his tongue, his hands working to get her shirt off and pants down. He laughed when he felt her moving, knowing that she was helping herself to his pants. He kicked them off when they dropped to his ankles, and he refused to stop kissing her as he fumbled around to get his shoes off. He toppled over, taking her with him as he fell into a nearby bed.

She moaned, feeling his hands smoothing up her body, his fingers pulling at her nipples through the satin of her bra. She squeezed her eyes shut when he pulled his lips away from hers, dropping them in light pecks down her neck and over her chest. "We're at work," she protested, knowing his hands were heading southward to pull her panties away from her body.

"Work's done," he mumbled, tugging the fabric down and latching his lips onto her right nipple. He suckled on it, moaning, as his hands shoved the silk underwear over her hips. He moved fast, picking up his head and crashing his mouth into hers, catching her cry as he pushed into her roughly.

Every moan, gasp, and curse was muffled by powerful kisses. Her body rose to meet his as he thrust, her fingers dug into his back, and this moment sealed itself into her memory. "Elliot," she whispered against his lips.

He whispered her name back to her, his hands wrapping around her wrists and pulling them away from his back. He moved her arms and pressed them into the mattress as he worked harder and faster, knowing their moment alone was fleeting. "Cum for me," he whispered into their kiss.

It was as if he'd said some magic spell. As soon as he told her to, she did. She clamped tightly around him, clenched as she screamed his name into his mouth.

He was still kissing her madly as he tried to thrust through her tightness. "God," he breathed, "Fuck, baby." He gave her two more pounds and stilled, as deep as he could get, and he let it all go, growling as he came, hot and fast, inside of her.

He loosened his grip on her wrists, softening his touch and slowing his kiss. "Cross this off our list," he said with a quiet chuckle. "Sex in the cribs."

She laughed, trailing her fingers up and down his arms. "We still have a couple places to go." She looked up at him. "What brought this on?"

"I planned this amazing night for us," he confessed. "We had reservations at Pethos uptown, I was really gonna pour on the romance."

She blinked and squinted, her palms splaying over his back. "Why?"

"You have no idea what today is," he realized, and then he laughed as he kissed her again and pushed himself up.

She moaned as he pulled out of her, but sat up as soon as he was off of the bed. She thought for a moment, and then she gasped. "Oh," she said. "Yeah, I do."

He had just pulled his pants up, and leaned over to kiss her again. "We just celebrated in the best possible way."

She smiled as she was lifted out of the bed, and they helped each other get dressed. After a long separation, and almost a year of red tape and bouncing around the legal system, he was officially, as of today, divorced.

Officially hers.

She fixed his collar and let out a breath, kissed the end of his nose, and asked him, "How do you feel?"

He grinned. "Already over it, and working on marriage number two." He held up two fingers, smirking, and blew her a kiss as he walked out, knowing it would take her a moment or two to realize exactly what he said.

 **A/N: I do have more moments planned, let me know?**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: A moment can be over in the blink of an eye. Or it can last forever.**

 **DISCLAIMER: If I owned the characters I wouldn't need to write a disclaimer.**

"Sharp knife," he said, kneeling beside the body of their latest victim. He looked over his shoulder, and up at his partner. "It was quick."

"Doesn't make me feel better," she said. She licked her lips and shook her head.

He got to his feet and moved closer to her. He lowered his voice as he said, "Fibers and fluids all over her. As soon as Warner finishes..."

"I know," she interrupted, blinking once. "She was just a kid, El."

He heard something in her voice that broke his heart. The way it wavered and softened, as if she was trying not to cry. "We'll find her killer, Liv," he told her. "We always do." He heard the medical examiner yell something at him, and he turned and yelled back. "Thanks," he called. "As soon as you know anything..."

"Yeah, you got it," Doctor Warner replied, and then went back to examining the young girl's body.

Olivia was the first to move. She took a few steps back toward the flashing lights and yellow tape, leaving Elliot a few feet behind her. "You once told me...that the difference between me and...them...is that I can walk away."

His heart dropped. "You...you told me you couldn't...you're not quitting on me, are you?"

"No, no way in Hell," she said firmly, nodding to a uniformed officer who lifted the tape for her. "No, I was just saying...it's cases like this that are the reason I can't. I can't just walk away from that little girl."

He got to the black sedan first, pushing her gently to open her door for her. "Neither can I," he said softly. "That's what makes us great, you know that, don't you?"

She gave him a slight smile, the color was coming back into her cheeks and her eyes were brightening. "Damn right," she said with a chuckle.

He grinned at her and slammed the door, ran around the car, and got in behind the wheel. He started it up and looked at her as he buckled up. "What was that meeting with Cragen about?"

"Huh?" she asked, hoping that pretending not to hear him would save her.

"We were in the middle of a huddle, Fin came in, told you Cragen needed to see you," he recapped, and then he pulled away from the grimy curb and drove down the street. "What did he want?"

She took a breath and sighed. "COMSTAT next month. It's my turn."

"I thought I had to go with him this time," he said, squinting as he turned the wheel.

"Yeah, well, you're recently divorced. He doesn't want to overwhelm you." She looked up for a moment. "If only he knew how well you're handling it all." She let out a small laugh.

"We'd both be looking for new jobs," he said with a snort. As he drove, he let one hand fall away from the wheel and reached for her hand. Grabbing it, he let out a long breath and smoothed his thumb over the side of her hand. "I don't think it would kill me as much now as it would have a year ago," he told her. "I come home to you every night, and what we have now...if I had to work with someone else, somewhere else, I could. Not that i want to."

She smiled and cupped his hand in both of hers. "No, I know, I get it. It's not such a petrifying thought anymore." She made a face at him. "Doesn't mean I'm going to give Cragen a reason to fire either of us. I want to avoid losing you, as a partner, for as long as possible."

"Amen," he said, and then he brought her hand up to his mouth and kissed her knuckles softly. He let her go, then, and turned into the precinct lot. He pulled the car into a space and coughed as he turned the car off. "Listen, uh...I've been meaning to ask you, I just...I got this thing at the twins' school next week. Some parent-teacher back to school night."

"You need me to watch Eli?" she asked, and her smile betrayed her hopefulness. "No problem. I'm gonna be there anyway, right?"

"No, uh..." he paused to clear his throat. "I want you to come with me." He looked at her, gauging her reaction, trying to figure out if the look on her face was fear, hysteria, or nausea. "Liv?"

"Um, me? Why?" she stammered.

He exhaled and ran a hand down his face. "You know, it...some of the things they might say, I'm gonna need someone there and...oh, Hell, who am I kidding. I want you there because, sooner or later, you're gonna be there stepmother, and besides, I've never gone to one of these things alone. I've got you, so I don't see the need to start now."

She hid the smirk on her face, her amusement at how nervous and befuddled he'd just become. "Of course, I'll go with you," she said. She leaned over and kissed his cheek. "But, uh, how soon are we talking?"

He was surprised. Almost stunned. "Uh, well, whenever you...whenever you're ready. That...what I said, there, that didn't just scare the shit out of you?"

She shook her head and licked her lips, giving him another kiss, on the lips, this time. "With you, I'm not scared of anything." She took a short breath and shifted in her seat as she worked her way out of the seatbelt. "Don't you get it? El, I was only terrified when it wasn't right. When I was hoping for something better to come along and afraid to miss out on it." Her eyes lit up. "Doesn't get any better than this, does it?"

"God, no," he answered. He leaned over and kissed her, hard and fast. When he pulled away, he looked her up and down, picking bits of lint and leaves off of her jacket. His hands ran gently over her curves, grazing the sides of her body over her purple sweater. He grew bold, then, and as he dragged his hands back up, he let his thumbs graze over her nipples. He chuckled again, a menacing sound, as he watched them perk up beneath the fabric of her bra and sweater. "I love that," he said, shaking his head.

After rolling her eyes, she moaned. "I can't go in there like this, now, damn you."

He laughed at her and pulled her jacket closed, fastening one button in the middle. "No one will no. No one but me. And you have no idea what I'm gonna be thinking about every time I look at you, do you?"

She smiled at him, and then rolled her eyes again as she got out of the car. She pulled down the hem of her jacket, brushed her palms against her pants, and readied herself to get to work. Almost instantly, her good mood dissipated. She would be heading into the One-Six to find the min who raped and killed a fourteen year old girl. Someone who could have been friends with her boyfriend's daughter. "You just had to cheer me up, didn't you?"

"My goal in life is to keep you deliriously happy, whenever possible," he said to her. "I refuse to apologize for that."

She looked down as they walked, a sadder smile on her face. "I love you," she said, in a tone so sweet and so soft, it didn't seem to come from her at all. She looked up at him. "I just wanted to tell you, now, since...I won't be able to for a while."

He grinned at her. "I love you too," he said. He pulled open the door and held it for her, but as she walked by him and into the lobby, something struck him. He froze. His eyes widened. He could feel his heart pound against his chest.

He wasn't certain, but he could swear that he'd just accidentally proposed.

And she said yes.

He let the door go as he ran to catch up to her, never more determined to solve a case fast, never more sure that his big mouth had done him a favor, and never more thankful to have friends in high places. He let the smile on his face grow as he walked with Olivia up the stairs.

It was going to be a long night, but when it ended, something else would really begin.

 **A/N: There are a few more moments a'brewing. If you want...**


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: And when the morning comes, the truth is in the sun.**

 **DISCLAIMER: If I owned the characters I wouldn't need to write a disclaimer.**

The water couldn't run hot enough. She couldn't remember much from the night before, but what she did remember, she wanted to burn it all away and watch it run down the shower drain.

Her head throbbed, almost as much as her thighs. Her ribs hurt, every time her heart pounded against them she felt them give and crack. She knew, in her given state, she shouldn't have given it, having known what it would lead to.

What it always led to, now.

The wrongness of it didn't stop them. Morals haven't been part of the equation for years. At least now, they were making up for it all.

The hot water streamed down her back, she ran her hands through her hair and down her face, and she let her head fall against the powder blue wall tiles. She winced from pain in her ribs and aching muscles straining to keep her upright.

Her eyes closed and her mind wandered back to the moment he burst through her the front door. The look of panic on his face, the worry and fear in his eyes, the sour cuss words flying from his angry lips, had done little to mask the love behind it all. She'd tried to tell him she was all right, but he, stubborn and thick headed, had needed to see for himself.

She had tried to stop him, but was easily overpowered in her weaker condition. He'd grabbed her face first, gently but firm enough, and ran his fingers along the visible cuts and bruises. Then his hands had wandered, they pulled at her clothes, traced the outlines of her wounds, and he'd kept whispering apologies and prayers each time he came upon a new one. She'd never been more grateful that the kids were visiting their grandparents.

And then, without warning, he had kissed her. Warm tears had fallen like leaves in an autumn breeze, slowly and methodically dragging down the rigid lines of his jaw and landing on her skin as his tongue had tried to tell her what his words had always failed.

It was then she had realized how lost she was, and she had surrendered, allowing herself to fall into him, letting him carry her into the bedroom. She knew there was really no way to describe what happened then.

They'd fucked. No. Made love. No. Possessed and claimed and worshipped each other, cried because they were still alive, promised to cut the bullshit and live for and with each other every second of every minute of every fucking day they were given from that fucking glorious moment forward. That is what they did.

Until this morning.

When she woke up late, he had turned off her alarm, and went off to work without her, leaving her alone in the house, again. She'd found the strength to pull herself out of bed and walk, limping, to the bathroom. Now, as she washed and discovered new bruises, she wished she had been stronger.

Stronger against the bastard who had resisted arrest and attacked her, yes, but more than that she wished she was stronger against whatever wizardry Elliot possessed that made her so fucking weak for him, that made her need him, crave him, submit to him, kill for him, and be so willing to die for him.

The knock on the bathroom door made her jerk upward, causing her to gasp and moan in pain. The door swung open, then, and his panicked voice asked her, "What's the matter?"

Clutching her side, she squeezed her eyes shut and tried to sound convincing. "Nothing, I just...I thought you went to work."

He pulled back the shower curtain and, to her surprise, stepped in under the water. His hands moved fast, smoothing over her body. "I went to get us breakfast," he said. "I'm not going to work until you do." He reached for the shampoo bottle and squirted a dollop into the palm of his hand. As has massaged it into her scalp and hair, he hummed the song that had become theirs.

She smiled as his fingers crossed and swirled in her hair, loving moments like this more than she thought she should. "I'm really okay."

"Bullshit," he laughed, and he dipped her back a bit to rinse her hair for her. "You don't have to lie to me about this. I'm here, I'm not going anywhere, and I'm gonna take care of you. You don't have to pretend it doesn't hurt, and you don't need those defenses up. Not with me."

She nodded and kissed the spot on his chest that her lips were closest to, and she nuzzled him for a moment. "El," she breathed, and when she felt his body vibrate as he hummed at her, she looked up. "Where were you?" She saw the guilt return to his eyes, but she quickly kissed him again. "I'm not mad, I'm not even remotely upset, I just...I need to know where you were."

He took a breath and he let it out, slowly and heavily. "I was, uh, talking to Tucker. I'm...I'm thinking of taking that promotion, and I need to know if being with you would...compromise things."

"Not anymore than it already has," she said, chuckling.

He reached over and turned off the water, smiling at her. "That's exactly what he said, but, Liv, I meant...really...being with you." He pulled her to him and kissed her slowly, and when he pulled away he whispered, "For life, Liv."

She wouldn't have believed she heard him correctly if she wasn't pressed against his chest and could feel his heart pounding. She blinked and prayed he wouldn't ask anything of her while they were naked and cold in the shower.

He kissed her again and drew the curtain back, stepping out first and holding her towel out. He wrapped her in it and led her back into the bedroom. He wouldn't ask, not today, but soon.

He laid her gently on the bed and pulled the towel away from her, then began to examine her battle scars. "If he wasn't dead," he said, "I'd kill him. You know that, don't you?"

"El," she said, rolling her eyes, "I'm fine."

He nodded, but with the daylight coming in through the bedroom window, he could see the truth. He crawled into the bed beside her, wrapped her in his arms, and whispered, "I love you."

"I love you, too," she said, curling into him.

A much needed nap was taking hold, the food forgotten in the living room, their limbs tangled and entwined just like their hearts. The morning had brought with it a new serenity, the calm after the storm. He whispered something else into her ear, and she nodded into the bend of his neck, smiling, and then craned upward to kiss him. When sleep won, their lips were still touching, frozen in the most perfectly blissful moment.

A moment of truth.

 **A/N: A random little plot bunny that wouldn't stop hopping. Thanks for reading!**


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: Sometimes, in the expected moments, something unexpected makes it momentous.**

 **DISCLAIMER: If I owned the characters I wouldn't need to write a disclaimer.**

"And Elizabeth is such a joy to have in class," the fifth grade English teacher proclaimed, looking across her desk at Elliot. "She has a true knack for writing and such a refreshing love of literature."

Elliot laughed, one foot propped up on the other leg and his hands on his knees. "Yeah, yeah, she, uh, she gets that from her mother." He narrowed his eyes, then, his smile flattening. "Stepmother, I mean…um…from…from…" he shook his head, unsure of how, when, and why he had just referred to Olivia as two things that she wasn't. At least, not yet.

The teacher's bright smile faded and she'd leaned back in her chair. "You're remarried? Already? I thought Richard or Elizabeth would have mentioned it."

"Oh, um…" he stiffened, dropping his bent leg, both feet planting on the floor. He opened his mouth, but before he spoke, the door opened and Olivia walked through it, grinning. "Hi," he said, smiling at her.

She sat in the empty chair next to him. "Sorry," she said, "That math teacher just wouldn't stop raving about Dickie." She looked at the English teacher. "Hello," she said, holding out a hand.

The teacher shook her hand, but her smile was a bitter one. "The new Missus Stabler, I presume?"

"Sorry, what?" Olivia choked, pulling her hand back before turning sharply toward Elliot.

"Nothing, honey," he said, taking her hand fast and linking their fingers. "So, uh, you were telling me about Lizzie. She and Liv read together every night, talk about the book, the characters…"

"Well, it's reflected in her grades," the teacher interrupted, not willing to hear anymore. "Your son, on the other hand, is not putting in a great deal of effort. His last two assignments are low C's, and he doesn't seem to be as enthused as your daughter about our current novel. Maybe your, um, wife…should be reading with him, too." She looked snidely at Olivia.

Olivia, though, smiled politely. "Oh, I do," she said. "Dickie's a typical boy, Miss Grant. He wants to read about superheroes, athletes, rock stars…he isn't as enthused as Lizzie because, honestly, what ten year old boy is gonna be excited to read Anne of Green Gables?" She sat up a little straighter and pulled her hand out of Elliot's. "How many of the boys in your class, with the exception of Lucas Fienstien, because he's just abnormal, are paying full attention to this book?"

Miss Grant blinked rapidly and folded her hands. "Well, um, not…not too many."

"And when the class read Holes, how did Dickie do, then?" Olivia asked. "I remember him bringing home incredibly high grades on tests, and what was it you said about his essay comparing Stanley to Zero? Oh, right, you said it was wildly insightful and well thought out, and that you were gonna use it as an example essay in next year's class. So, please, don't try to tell me that my son needs has a problem, when you've chosen books that obviously appeal to one gender over the other." She held up a hand. "Don't get me wrong, I fully understand that the assignment should be done to the best of the his ability, and he will be given an appropriate punishment for slacking off, but as a teacher in a co-ed school, you should know that boys will not be fully engrossed in a story about a little girl who hates being a redhead. Maybe the focus needs to be on a more engaging curriculum, and implementation of a little understanding and motivational teaching."

Elliot was staring at her, pride in his eyes and his jaw on the floor. "Liv," he said, shocked.

"I've already said, he will be spoken to, and he will understand that whether or not he enjoys the book, the work has to be done," she said firmly. "All I ask, as a parent, is that you put a little more thought into your choices, and make sure each and every student will be learning and thriving."

Miss Grant cleared her throat, pressed her lips together, and said, "Yes, well, um, I will…think about that, thank you."

"Aside from the novel," Olivia said, "How are they doing? Grammar, spelling, written work?"

Miss Grant flipped open her grade book. "They're both…earning top marks. You should…you should be very…proud of them."

"We are," Olivia said, nodding and smiling. "If that's it, then, I think our time is up." She rose from her seat, held out her hand to shake the teacher's, and walked out with a smug grin on her face.

Elliot laughed to himself as he got up. Smoothing out his tie, he said, "Thank you," with a nod. He walked out after Olivia and when he met up with her in the hallway, he pulled her toward him. "You let her have it in there."

"I'm sorry," she said, burying her face in her hands. "I don't know where any of that came from. I didn't mean to step on your toes, or act like…like his mother…I just got so defensive."

"Why are you apologizing?" he asked, chuckling. "Liv, you were incredible! You were…you really were. I was going to say something, get mad a Dickie for not working hard enough, but then you…you were so…" he couldn't find the words, so his lips chose a different form of communication. He kissed her, firmly and deeply. He pulled away fast, looked into her eyes, and said, "I love you."

"Dad!" Dickie yelled, running down the hall toward him. He laughed as he yelled, "Liv!" He was carrying a big cookie and had chocolate all over his lips.

Olivia laughed and knelt in front of him as he slowed, and using her thumbs, she wiped the corners of his mouth. "That must be one yummy cookie." She saw him lick his lips and nod, and then take another bite, and she kissed his cheek. "Where'd you get it?"

Dickie waited until he chewed and swallowed, and then said, "Cafeteria. They have snacks. You guys have to come with me! Our art and science projects are there!" He pulled on her arm, trying to tug her down the hall.

She looked over her shoulder at Elliot. "I'm being taken hostage, El, save me!"

He chuckled again and moved fast, looping an arm around her waist, pulling her closer to him as they walked. He kissed her cheek as they followed Dickie around the corner, into the cafeteria. "You want one of those, don't you?" he asked, pointing to Dickie's cookie.

She kissed him on the lips fast. "You know I do," she whispered. She turned to Dickie and said, "Which one of these is yours?" as she waved a finger across a row of fifth grade art projects.

"This one," Dickie said, proudly pointing to a large poster. It was meant to mimic a movie ad, with a bold, box-letter title and colored pencil characters in a stereotypical pose. There were photograph faces on the brightly colored bodies. He looked up at her and smiled again. "It's supposed to be you and Daddy."

"I see that," she said, her voice soft, her eyes welling up with tears. She ran a finger down the hand-drawn and painted picture, sniffling. "You think of us like…"

"Action heroes," Dickie said, interrupting her. "Yeah."

Elliot walked over with Lizzie by his side, holding his hand, and said, "Hey, Liv, this little girl, here, wants us to see her movie poster. Apparently, she thinks we'd make one heck of a romantic comedy together." He handed Olivia a cookie, kissed her, and briefly wondered why she was crying.

Olivia wiped her eyes again, and laughed through her tears. "Dickie thinks we're more like the next great action duo." She pointed to Dickie's poster.

"Oh, wow," Elliot said, looking at it, and then at the one beside it, Lizzie's. "Guys, uh," he cleared his throat, getting choked up just as Olivia had. "What made both of you want to use us?"

"It was part of the assignment," Lizzie said, biting into her own cookie. "We had to use pictures of our parents."

Olivia gasped, and then she coughed, and then more tears fell, slowly. "Oh, guys, I'm…I'm not…"

"Mister Stabler!" a low voice called, interrupting them. A man was coming toward them, eagerly holding out a hand.

Elliot smiled, returning the gesture. "Hello, Mister Reynolds." He whispered to Olivia, "The principal."

Olivia cleared her throat, straightened up, and rubbed her eyes. "Hello," she said, smiling.

The principal looked at her and said, "I am honored to meet you." He shook her hand and said, "Richard and Elizabeth told me all about you. It's wonderful that they're so excited about this! Usually, in cases like this, the children feel…"

"Excuse me, cases like what?" Olivia asked, furrowing her brow.

Mister Reynolds smiled. "Stepparents," he said. "I've had my share of experiences with them, and I have never seen any child as exuberant about it as your two kids." He gestured toward the wall. "It's clear, by those projects, that they love the both of you, very much." He looked at Elliot, not noticing the somewhat sad smile taking over Olivia's face. "As far as their behavior goes, you know, Richard gets into a tiff here and there, boy stuff, nothing worth fretting over. Elizabeth is in the running for sixth grade monitor, and she's going to be on the academic team next term. You have two exceptional children, and I couldn't be more proud that they're students here." He looked up and over their heads. "Oh, excuse me," he said, and then he lowered his voice. "Parents of a real problem child just walked in." He patted Elliot on the shoulder before walking away from them.

Olivia, still fixed in her emotional state, looked down at Lizzie and Dickie. "You…you told your principal that I'm your…stepmother?"

Lizzie looked up at her, her eyes wide and shining behind her glasses. "You mean you're not?" she asked, sounding honestly surprised.

"Oh, sweetie, I…" she lost her voice, then, and she looked at Elliot. He looked as if he was going to be crying along with her any minute, but his eyes and his smile told her exactly what to say to them. She looked back down, her eyes moving from Lizzie to Dickie and back again. "I just didn't know you told your principal."

"We had to," Dickie said with a shrug. "He wanted to know why you were coming to parent night."

Elliot and Olivia laughed, together, and Elliot pulled Olivia into his arms. He ran his hands down her arms, feeling the fabric of her sweater move under his touch. "You're not…mad? Upset?"

"Just wondering why they even thought…" she began as she shook her head, but Elliot kissed her, shutting her up. He pulled away and looked into her eyes as he whispered, "They know you're their mommy now, and you have been since the day…no, Liv, really, since before Kathy left. They're too young to know that it isn't legal until there's a wedding, they're too young to know that we didn't even have a wedding. They just know that they…want you to be their mommy."

Olivia blinked, taking his hands in hers. "El, was I just reading too much into things, or…the other night, in bed, did you…ask?"

He let out a breathy, silent, single laugh. "Yeah, I…I think I did. Not officially, but…in theory I asked." He kissed her quickly again. "Did you answer me?"

"You know I did," she said, and then she bit her lip.

"So they're not wrong," he said with a smirk. He moved in to kiss her, but he felt someone tugging on his pants. He looked down, his lips still puckered, and looked at his young daughter. "Yes, Princess?"

"May I have another cookie?" Lizzie asked.

Olivia held out the one in her hand, that she hadn't yet had the chance to eat. "Here, sweetheart. Take mine." She looked at Elliot. "You were gonna…"

"Kiss you," he said, grinning, and he finally did it, his tongue sweeping along her lips, finding its way into her mouth, as he held her in his arms, and promised himself, and his kids, he would never let go.

 **A/N: Sweet and fluffy family moment, but there's hotness…just around the corner. Clarification: Elliot and Kathy were married for just shy of 20 years, Maureen is 19, Kathleen is 16, the twins are 10, Eli is 2. Elliot is 38, Olivia is 35.**


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: In certain moments, brevity and eternity are synonymous.**

 **DISCLAIMER: If I owned the characters I wouldn't need to write a disclaimer.**

"The last Stabler child is officially asleep," Olivia said as she walked into the bedroom.

"Oh," Elliot said, laughing as he pulled her into his arms, "Eli is…not the last Stabler kid. Not by a longshot." He wagged his brows suggestively at Olivia and smirked as he bent his head to kiss her.

She chuckled into his mouth, her hands moving to loop around his neck.

He moaned, slipping his own hands down her body, into the waist band of her flannel pajama pants, cupping her bare ass underneath the cotton. He moaned again, squeezing her harder and pulling her into him.

She gave a low yelp, bucking her hips, rolling her body into his. She pulled away slightly, eyeing him with a wicked, lustful grin. "What, are we working on another one, right now?"

"Maybe," he said, scraping his teeth over his bottom lip. He got a good grip on her and threw her to his right, onto the mattress. He looked down at her, his blue eyes dark and his lips still tingling from their kiss. He pulled his tee shirt off, over his head, throwing it behind him, unconcerned with where it landed. He held her gaze, watching her eyes widen, her chest rise and fall fast, as he shoved his navy blue sweatpants down and kicked them off.

She licked her lips, seeing all of him, fully exposed, looming toward her. She held her breath as he pounced, and she laughed when his mouth latched onto her neck and he growled against her skin.

His hands moved nimbly, making quick work of her pants, and he growled again, her flesh still in between his teeth, when he felt her legs rise and bend, helping him get her out of her clothes. His left hand traveled back up her body, under her black tank top, and palmed her right breast before squeezing it wantonly. He heard her moan and it spurred him into action. He peppered her neck with kisses as he moved, heading for her lip. Capturing them, he pinched and rolled her nipple in between his thumb and finger, pulling and making her seethe and writhe.

She felt his other hand slipping between her legs and she couldn't stop the unladylike curse that flew out of her mouth when he ran the side of his hand between her swollen, aching, wet folds. Another gasp, another curse, and a very breathless, "Oh, God, Elliot," left her lips, catching on Elliot's tongue.

He laughed proudly, pushing her shirt upward. "Off," he barked, returning his hand to her nipple while the other kept pressing into and up her slickness. "Now."

With shaky arms, she crunched up and tugged off her shirt, letting it drop to the bedroom floor off the side of the bed. Her hands moved almost immediately, then, to his ass. She palmed, squeezed, and pulled, silently begging him. "Elliot," she mewed, and then she nipped at his earlobe and let her hot breath pant into his ear.

A strangled moan escaped him as he shifted himself fully on top of her. He used his hand and right knee to work her legs apart, and pulled himself away from her to look deeply into her eyes. Without a sound, he aimed and thrust his hips, slowly pushing into her, watching her wide-open eyes as he did.

Her jaw dropped, her eyes rolled backward, her head fell limply to the pillow, and her fingers curled. Her nails were digging into the rounds of his ass, and she moaned when she felt his muscles twitch and clench in her hands. "Elliot," she moaned softly.

He lowered himself to her, and kissed her slowly, as he started to pull out, thrust in again, repeating in a slow, deep, steady rhythm. "Liv," he whispered, biting at her lips, nudging her with his nose. "Look at me," he gently demanded.

She raised her head and opened her eyes, looking right into his as he moved a notch faster, a bit deeper. Sliding her hands up, raking her nails along his spine, she whimpered his name over and over, never blinking, never looking away. The burning desire for him, physically, emotionally, sexually, consumed her, and if he asked her anything at this moment, she would be unable to refuse him.

Seeing the glazed look in her eyes, he dropped his head and kissed her again, trying to reach parts of her no one else ever had or would, unaware that he had already accomplished it and more. His hips rocked faster now, his right hand toying with the perked bud between its fingers; his left hand slowly trailed back down her body, eager to find another button to push. He worked his hand between their bodies, inching closer to their joint sex. He readied himself to muffle the scream he knew he was about to provoke, and kissed her deeply as his thumb rolled over her sensitive bundle of nerves.

Her body arched sharply, her nails dug deeper into the skin of his shoulder blades, as she let a high-pitched cry loose into his mouth. Her hip rocked against his now, meeting him thrust for glorious thrust, as she clutched him frantically. She didn't stop kissing him, not for a moment, as the sounds of their moans and slapping skin filled the room.

He groaned and growled as he felt her clawing at his back, knowing she was close to losing all control. He pried his lips away from hers, looked down at her, and again, he ordered, "Look at me."

It took all of her will to open her eyes, but when she did she saw her whole world staring back at her. "Elliot," she panted. "Oh, God, Elliot, baby," she puffed, each word hanging on its own cloud of air.

He pressed the balls of his feet against the bedboard for leverage, and he moved into her even faster, pounding into her almost brutally, his body thumping against hers. With her, he gave her everything. The way she took all of him in, the way he completely bottomed out inside of her, made his head spin. He shook his head at her, then, and repeated, "Baby, look at me, please, Liv."

She opened her eyes again, straining against the pressure and the need to close her eyes. She cupped his face as she struggled to keep her eyes fixed on his, and with his next two powerful thrusts and drags, she felt the escalating electricity burn through her body. "El," she moaned. A warning.

He kept up his punishing pace, gripping her hip with one hand, the other still furiously toying with her clit. He felt her pulsing around him, felt her clenching, and then suddenly, her body seized him completely. Beneath him, she cried his name and God's in a manic fury.

Her legs curled around his body, her tightened core keeping him from moving as she gripped him. "Elliot, God, Elliot," she said, her voice wavering as she shook and trembled.

He gave one more slam, and then stilled against her. He felt her inner walls pulsate again and it was his undoing. He felt her clench tightly again, milking him, forcing him to give in. "Oh, fuck, God, Liv," he spat, his gravelly voice undulating, now, too. He shot off, hotly, into her, as his body jerked and shuddered.

A long moment of silence passed, their trembling, quivering bodies collapsing and tangling together. He only moved his lips, covering her face and neck in small, quick kisses as his hands ran through her hair lovingly. "Liv," he whispered, dropping his head to hers.

She whimpered as he rolled them over, she felt him twitch inside of her again and it made her quiver. Her head fell against his chest, his pounding heart drummed in her ear, and her eyes slid shut. "Wow," she breathed, a smile gracing her face.

He chuckled and nodded, still brushing her hair back with his fingers. They lay, entangled, just breathing fast, trying to calm. He seethed and bucked involuntarily when she clenched again, her body giving off small aftershocks. "Baby," he groaned, rolling his eyes.

She laughed, sliding her body against his slowly. "What can I say?" she shrugged, "I can't control myself with you."

He shook his head and kissed the top of hers. "I have no self-control when it comes to you, either," he said. "I never could."

She moaned as she pushed herself up, twisted her body, and peered down at him. Her left hand drew lazy circles on his glistening chest as she propped herself up on her right. "I know," she said. "I was there." She leaned in for a kiss, loving the way he whispered her name against her lips. "I love you."

"I love you," he replied, and he goaded her head back down to his chest with his strong hand. "I was thinking…"

"Uh-oh," she teased, still running the tip of her finger in intricate patterns on his slick skin.

He moaned in response, loving the feeling of her touch. "So rude," he laughed. "But so fucking beautiful." He mimicked her actions, his own fingertips tracing hearts and swirls on her back.

"Hmm," she cooed. "What were you thinking about?"

"You," he said, and then he added, "Us. The kids, this house, work…I told Tucker I'd take the job."

Her head snapped up, there was an unreadable expression in her eyes. "El, I…"

He kissed her to stop her talking. "I was too late," he said, a mixture or regret and relief in his words. "I didn't give him a final answer in time, they needed to fill the spot…" he trailed off with a small shrug. "So now, uh, I think…I need to ask you…baby, should we try to talk to Cragen? Maybe we're worrying for nothing, I mean, Ed knows. Ed Tucker fucking knows, and he's not threatening to do anything to us. Maybe we…"

"Tucker told you it's Cragen's call, not his," Olivia interrupted. "So, no, I don't think we're 'worrying for nothing' I think we are worrying for a lot of fucking…"

"Shh," he hushed, kissing her sweetly again. "I'm asking if you want to talk to him, together, and see what, exactly, we're facing…or if you want to keep our private life…private. No one knows, not for sure, and we can keep it that way if that's what you want. But, baby, I want a wedding, kids…we can't really do that without…"

"I don't want to lose you," she whispered, fear in her eyes. "What if he splits us up, or makes one of us transfer, or what if…"

"We'll never know, unless we talk to him," he said, cutting her off. "It was just a thought, honey. We don't have to do it now, we can wait." He skimmed his hand up and down her back again. "But there are a few things I can't wait for, not anymore." He moved his other hand down her body, from her neck to her stomach, and he flattened his palm over her belly button. "I'm ready, for all of it, if you are."

Her eyes sparkled in the dark room, her lips curled into a smile as tears formed in her eyes, and she threw herself against him, nodding, as she kissed him.

In the morning, they would open Cragen's door, and open the floodgates, and pray they could reach higher ground in time.

 **A/N: ohh. I love moments like this. More fluff, next time. Want it?**


	8. Chapter 8

****A/N: Some people wait a lifetime, for a moment like this.. - Kelly Clarkson****

 ** **DISCLAIMER: If I owned the characters I wouldn't need to write a disclaimer. And also, the show would need to be on HBO after 11PM...****

The card's words struck her hard. Harder than she'd anticipated. The printed poem, the gold leaf lettering, the embossed script that called her 'mom,' it all added up to something she felt she did not deserve. It wasn't until he called her name, twice, that she realized she was staring too intently at the folded stock. "Yeah?" she said, looking up at him, trying to pretend she was okay.

"What's the matter with you?" he asked, worried. He stepped around the kitchen's island, looped an arm around her waist, and let his fingers toy with the hem of her red button down shirt as he whispered into her ear, "They picked it out, on their own. I didn't prod, or influence this at all."

She turned her head a bit more, raising one eyebrow. "What?"

He nodded as he kissed her forehead. "This is how they really think of you. They didn't want to leave you out on Mother's Day, because you..." he stopped, his words catching in his throat as emotion overwhelmed him. "Liv, you're their mom," he whispered with a shrug.

She shook her head, tears falling and going unnoticed. She sniffed once as she looked back at the card, and then toward the six gift bags on the island. "I can't believe they..." she paused, reaching for the smallest bag.

He stopped her, taking her hand and laughing. "No, uh, that one's for last."

She shot him an inquisitive look, but smiled and then grabbed he biggest one, a white bag with pink and silver roses on the front. She flipped over the tag and read "Love, Maureen," written in pink marker. She pushed aside the silver tissue paper and curled her fingers around the side of a beautiful silver picture frame. She carefully lifted it out of the bag, and the tears fell more freely.

"Oh, my God," she breathed, pulling her other hand out of Elliot's grasp to lay the frame flat on its palm. She traced the engraved lettering as she whispered, "Family." She smiled as she looked down at the photograph, the seven of them, in coordinating outfits, genuinely smiling for the camera. She trailed one fingertip down Eli's little face, laughing at the memory of having to promise him ice cream if he didn't squirm, and how he threw a tantrum until he was switched from his father's arms to hers.

"you now, uh, the last time we had family pictures taken, before this, the kids were miserable," Elliot spoke, taking the frame from her and looking down longingly at it. "This," he said with one nod, "Is a family picture."

She nodded and chuckled, and said, "My first." Her eyes flickered as she asked, "When did they come in?"

"Couple days ago," he told her with a wink. "They didn't want you to see them until you opened this one. We'll look through them, tonight, after dinner." He kissed her once, and then he sighed happily as he slid the next bag toward her. "Guess who this one's from," he laughed.

She feigned ignorance as she took the blue bag, with a huge Wonder Woman insignia blazing across it, from him. "Gee, I dunno." Flipping the tag, she nodded. "Dickie," she said, and then she opened the bag wider. She reached in, clutching the contents, and pulled an oversized coffee mug out of the yellow tissue. "Mommy fuel," she read, laughing hard. "Oh, this is perfect, she said, tracing the lettering on the ceramic with a fingernail. "Where'd he get this?"

"Same place Lizzie got this," he said, grinning, handing her a smaller, plain red bag. "They had a sale at school. They picked these out, honey, with no help from me." He kissed her temple and watched her open his youngest daughter's hand picked gift. He tilted his head, softened his expression, and whispered, "Don't cry."

She felt him brush away a few tears as she stared, with a partly opened mouth, at the paperweight in her hands. She turned it, twisted it, unable to understand why Elliot's ten year old daughter had given it to her. "This is beautiful," she said, curving her fingers around the carved marble figures. A mother, holding a little girl on her lap, reading a book.

"That's what the two of you look like, ya know," he said to her. "When you're reading together. She saw that, Liv, and she told her teacher that it was perfect, and that it was meant to be yours."

She wiped her own eyes, shaking her head. "I'm gonna need to fix my makeup before we go," she joked, rubbing the back of her hand under her left eye.

"Nah," he said, smiling at her. "Just wash it all off. You don't need it." He picked up another bag, this one an odd size, with a lot of paper and ribbon stuffed inside. "Forgive the wrapping," he said, "She forgot to do it, so...she just threw this together this morning."

"Kathleen?" Olivia asked, chuckling. She saw Elliot nod, rolled her eyes, and then opened the gift. "Oh, how...this is gorgeous!" She let the silk of the scarf skim over her hands, through and around her fingers, the silver swirling design shimmering in the light.

"You see what those are?" he asked, holding the material still so she could look closely.

She gasped, and then let out a hard guffaw, realizing the pattern she thought was so delicate was actually a series of linked and unclasped handcuffs. "Oh, God, where on earth did she find this?"

"She got it off of one of those nerdy licensed TV merchandise websites," he said, running his hands up and down her arms. "This is an official 'NYPD Blue' scarf."

The laugh that came out of her mouth rivaled the previous one, and she shook her head as she folded the scarf and dropped it back into Kathleen's gift bag. She picked up a McDonald's Happy Meal box, raising one eyebrow, smirking. "Lemme guess," she said knowingly.

"Sorry to tell you, he kept the crown," he laughed. "Open it."

She peeled apart the cardboard golden arches, and her face lit up. "Oh," she gasped, lifting it gingerly into her hand. "Did he make this?"

"At school," Elliot nodded. "Yeah." He brushed her hair back. "You should know...he made it with every intention of giving it to you. He drew Kathy a picture, and he didn't even write his name at the bottom, so...""

"Really?" she asked, interrupting him. She looked back down into her hand, at the small oval of plaster. She placed her hand over the imprint of Eli's, marveling at how tiny it was. She then moved her hand, fingering along the painted lettering on the top. 'For Mommy' stared up at her, in shades of blue and green, with 'm's that had too many loops and a 'y' with a backward facing tail. "El, this is the kind of thing he should give his mother."

"Baby," he said, pulling her closer to him, "That's exactly what he did." He took the handprint from her, carefully set it back in the box, and then piked up the last bag. "This...I'm hoping that this will make you realize it." She reached for the bag, but he swatted her hands away. "No, uh," he began, and he started to shake slightly as he reached into it. "This one...this one I have to open for you." He clenched the small box in his hand, and as he took a deep, trembling breath, he sunk down to the tiled kitchen floor, situating on one knee.

"What are you..." she stopped talking, having figured out exactly what he was doing. "Oh, shit," she said, her eyes widening.

He chuckled at that, but fear took over again. He exhaled through pursed lips, and then looked up at her. "My kids think of you as their mother already, and I can't say that surprises me. The love you've given them, the way you protect them, defend them, amazes me every day. I will never now what I did to deserve having you in my life, loving me, but God, I am so damn thankful. You are the answer to every prayer, the miracle I always begged God to give me, but never really believed he would give. We've been partners for years, working side by side, proving that we are the perfect team, and that, together, we're unstoppable." He took another breath, his cheeks puffing out as he exhaled again. "It's true, beyond work, and I don't even remember who I am without you, and I never want to. I think we should be partners...for life, Liv." He flipped open the blue velvet box in his hands, his eyes wide open and set intensely on her face. He saw her hands fly over her mouth, her eyes widen and redden, and he bit his lip hard before asking, "Will you marry me?" and then he held his breath, and waited.

Struck with pure amazement, she was frozen. Her brain wouldn't send the signals to her body to move or her mouth to speak, as she simply stood, rooted to her spot, staring at the ring in the box. Suddenly, her legs buckled, and she fell to her knees in front him, falling hard along with her tears. All she could do was nod, a small sob flying into her hands as they still pressed over her mouth.

"Wait," he said, finally letting himself breathe. "You...did you say yes? Was that a yes?"

Her limbs loosened and her hands fell away from her face and moved to his. She cupped it, moved closer, and brushed her nose against his as she nodded again and whispered, "Yes."

He let out a relieved, sighing moan, his body moving toward hers, and he kissed her as his tears began to mix with hers and he blindly searched for her left ring finger. His hand quavered as he slipped the platinum circle around her finger, and then looped both arms around her, squeezing hard. "I love you," he said softly as he sniffled. "God, I love you so much."

"I love you, too," she cried back, closing her eyes and kissing him again.

Standing in the archway between the living room and the kitchen, four grinning children stood watching. The oldest, crying herself, turned to her siblings. "We should have woke Eli up for this," she said.

"He's not old enough to see this," Kathleen quipped. "I don't think I'm old enough to see this," she added.

"She's really gonna be our mom now," Dickie said, the joy clear in his voice.

Lizzie laughed. "I told Daddy I didn't lie to Mister Reynolds." She was the first to move, rushing toward her father and Olivia, still locked in a kiss on the kitchen floor. She wrapped her little arms around Olivia, breaking her away from Elliot, but no one seemed to mind.

Seeing Lizzie being welcomed into a hug triggered a chain reaction, and one by one, the kids piled onto the newly engaged couple, until it was hard to tell where one Stabler ended and the other began, and they were all laughing and crying as they attempted to figure it out.

It was only when a soft, groggy voice called out, "Mom?" that the group pulled itself apart.

Olivia looked to her left and her heart leaped, and she smiled as she said, "Come here, sweetheart."

Eli rubbed his eyes with tiny balled fists, yawning as he dragged his feet, making his way over. He fell into Olivia's arms as his eyes closed and he spoke, with what little energy he had left. A garbled, mumbled, "Happy muddersh day," left his little lips, and Elliot laughed before explaining.

"I've been trying to teach him to say, 'Happy Mother's Day," he laughed, wiping his eyes. "Guess that's the best he could do."

"It was perfect," she said, dropping her forehead against his, cradling a now sleeping Eli in her arms. "Everything is absolutely perfect."

"Liv," he whispered. When she looked at him, he grabbed her chin with two fingers, and slowly turned her head.

Her eyes widened and new tears formed, a smile began to grow on her face as she looked at the person standing, crying tears of their own, in the archway. She sniffled and blinked slowly, and then titled her head as she said, "Happy Mother's Day, Mom."

 **A/N: To all of my readers, whether you are a mother, stepmother, grandmother, Godmother, fur-mommy, aunt, guardian, teacher, doctor, or advocate: Happy Mother's Day. May you always know how truly special you are in the lives you touch, and the hearts of the people you love.**


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: Life isn't perfect, but it has its perfect moments. - Anonymous**

 **DISCLAIMER: If I owned the characters I wouldn't need to write a disclaimer. And also, the show would need to be on HBO after 11PM…**

The week with Olivia's mother flew by, as did days of trying to explain her relationship to people. First, friends, who reacted skeptically, knowing her lousy track record and habit of running away from relationships when they got too serious. They had been taking bets on when she'd finally hook up with Elliot, but now they were betting on when they'd call it quits. It only spurred Olivia to prove them all wrong, and prove they didn't really know her at all.

Family was easy. Her mother had known, long before Elliot and Olivia would admit, and she loved the whole brood of Stablers. Bernie Stabler knew, even before Serena Benson, and was one of the driving forces of the burgeoning relationship between her son and his partner. Elliot's siblings already had suspected them of having an affair, so it came as no surprise when they broke the news.

It was the family that had formed not by blood but by bond, the men in her unit who'd become brothers, the man who'd been the only father she'd ever known, the superiors who never looked down on her and rookies who looked up to her. It was time, she knew it had to be done, she and Elliot had decided weeks ago to tell the world, but they'd been putting off telling the one person who could destroy everything they'd worked so hard to build up.

"You ready?" Elliot asked as gently as he could. He was nervous, though, and his hands were clammy. He wiped one on his thigh, his grey suit pants turning dark with moisture, and held it out to her.

Slipping her hand into his palm, she felt his pulse beating through his fingers, and she did little more than nod.

He pulled her out of her chair, for the first time that day realizing that she was wearing the dark blue shirt she'd worn the day they met. It seemed like a lifetime ago; it seemed like yesterday. He smiled and said, "You look so beautiful in blue."

She blushed and looked away from him, slightly surprised that he could still make her feel like a giddy girl on a first date. She squeezed his hand and walked with him toward the foreboding oak door leading to Cragen's office. He looked at her and took a breath, they silently agreed that it was time, and he lifted his free hand to knock.

Before he could, however, the door swung open and Cragen yelled, "Benson!"

Olivia and Elliot jumped back, but had to laugh at the meek and apologetic look on Cragen's face. "She's right here," Elliot said.

"Sorry, I didn't expect…" Cragen pauses, catching sight of their entwined hands. "Get in here. Both of you."

Elliot felt Olivia tugging her hand back but it only made him grip hers harder. He pulled her into the office and gestures to one of the leather chairs in front of Cragen's desk. As she sat, so did he, and he cleared his throat. "We need to tell you…"

"When," Cragen interrupted. "When did it start, when is it ending?"

Elliot squinted. "I'm only answering one of those questions. Never. That's why we're here, actually."

"No," Cragen snapped. "You're here because Tucker needs you on a high-profile case and I need to give you the stats, so now, before I get into that, what do you…"

"We're getting married," Elliot said, unable to sound anything but deliriously happy. "Soon."

Cragen shot a hard look at Elliot and a softer one toward Olivia. "You don't have to marry him, Olivia. This isn't the Fifties, you know, there are a million single mothers who…"

"I'm not pregnant!" she snapped, offended, "Even if I was, it wouldn't be the reason we're doing this!" She yanked her hand back and stood up fast, in the heat of the moment forgetting that she was in her boss's office. "I love him! Fuck, every damn person in this building knew it before I would admit it, even his mother figured it the fuck out! If you're telling me you had no idea, and you honestly think the only reason he'd marry me is because…"

"He did it before!" Cragen barked back. "He married Kathy because he knocked her up!"

"I'm not Kathy!" She fumed and her voice was almost a growl.

Elliot, though amused at his fiancée and her brazenness, needed to break the tension. "Thank God for that." He rubbed a slightly shaking hand across his forehead and looked at Cragen with a sigh. "So who told you? Tucker? The Chief?"

Cragen's eyes narrowed even more, his lips flattening into a thin, pale line. "They know? You told them before you told me?" He slumped backward and folded his arms. "Just how the hell long has this been going on?" He grumbled something unintelligible and then asked, "And why the hell did you tell them before me?"

Elliot was baffled by the sudden and seemingly heartbroken reaction, when only a moment ago, Cragen had trivialized their news. "I was up for a promotion, thought you knew that. I had to tell them, if they gave me the job without knowing, it would look like I was hiding something, which…" he shook his head. "Look, we came to talk to you...not as your detectives, but as...well, family. You know you're the closest thing she has to a father, and you've been more of one to me than my own ever was, and we were terrified to come to you with this before, not knowing where we stand with you."

Cragen's hard look softened, his broad shoulders rose and fell with his heavy breath and loud sigh. "I'm sorry I made you feel like you couldn't trust me with this."

Olivia had to laugh, though it wasn't in amusement. "You warned us, over and over, not to get involved. Told us we were too close, and anything happening would put our jobs in jeopardy. It never once crossed your mind that all would make us just a bit scared to come forward with this?"

Cragen looked at her sheepishly. "It was policy bullshit, my way of telling you I saw what…" he waved a hand between them. "I saw what was happening. I thought, if anything ever actually happened, you'd feel it absolutely necessary to tell me, the moment it did."

It was Elliot's turn to laugh. "You wouldn't have even finished processing her transfer," he mumbled, and then out a choking grunt as he felt Olivia's elbow collide with his ribcage. "You told me to be honest with him!"

"Not that honest," she chided. She exhaled slowly and looked up at Cragen, hoping he didn't hear Elliot's idiotic confession. "So you saw it happening, it happened, how long it's been is not a concern, here, because we did our jobs, right? We didn't fuck anything up, we just came to ask you if this really is going to cost one of us…"

"No," Cragen interrupted. "Not yet, anyway. Putting my professional stance aside, here, I'm...I'm happy for you." He eyed Olivia for a moment, and he grinned. "That's the shirt you were wearing when I hired you."

She blinked. "Yeah, how did you...both of you remembered that, it…"

"It was a good day, Liv," Elliot said, smiling at her. "That day changed my life."

Cragen nodded. "Mine, too, Benson," he said. "For the time being, you're both...still partners, keep your ranks, but the first time your relationship gets in the way of the job, causes any damage, one of you is out, understand?" He saw them both nod, too stunned to speak. He raised a finger and pointed, wagging it slightly like an annoyed father. "And if anything happens, you break up, one of you finds someone else…"

"Never gonna happen," Elliot professed loudly, firmly.

Cragen didn't buy it, and he continued. "If it does, you still need to be able to work together, the way you always have, because I am not playing musical chairs with my squad to fix the boo-boos and broken hearts, do you understand me?"

Elliot nodded, looked at Olivia, and said, "I can agree to that, can you?"

Olivia thought back, her memories playing like a movie, the times when her jealousy of Kathy wound her up tighter than a pocket-watch, her anger taken out on Elliot or a perp during interrogation, three years of lies and cover-ups, a little over one of pure bliss with nothing to cover up any more, moments with the kids when they truly felt like hers, and days when Elliot wouldn't let her out of bed. Fights that lasted a week, leading to epic make-ups, none of which had any more or less impact on their ability to do their jobs, coexist. She looked back at Elliot and nodded. "Nothing to worry about, then," she turned her head slowly, Cragen coming back into focus. "Is there?"

"Apparently not," Cragen said. "I do have to put this in your files, which may spark a flame or two with the commissioner, and I don't know how much trust you have in Tucker not to use this as leverage the next time you end up in the IAB dog-house."

"I told you," Elliot began, "I already talked to Tucker, he said...pretty much the same thing you just said."

There was a moment of silence, tension began to grow thick. Olivia shifted in her seat, hoping someone would her she could leave. As she was about to take a chance and stand, Cragen's voice broke the quiet.

"Oh!" he yelled. "The reason I was calling the two of you in here, before you...hit me over the head with this," he said, and he turned back to grab a file off of his desk. The case was one that would merit a lot of negative press, require days of avoiding cameras and holding press conferences, force them to be at the station twenty-four hours, non-stop, until it was closed. He looked at them, saw the light in their eyes that had only just appeared, and he knew it was because they'd finally been able to open up and he just couldn't dampen it now. "I'll, um...it's not important. Just tell Fin and Munch to come in here, please."

He watched them smile at him, and as they left his office, he closed his eyes and let his smile finally fully form. In the moment, he felt like a proud father, witnessing his children experience ultimate happiness. It was a moment he knew was fleeting, but one he would allow himself to bask in, as long as time would allow.

 **A/N: To all of my readers, I know this has taken a while to update, but I lost inspiration and motivation for quite some time. Thank you all for still being there.**


End file.
